Colonel Danforth Dog Park and Highland Creek

Highland Creek runs through Colonel Danforth Park, and there are many trails to explore where you may see a variety of birds, and perhaps some wildlife.

Deer seen near Colonel Danforth Dog Park

Off-Leash Dog Park

This post documents a short trail that starts at the Colonel Danforth Off-Leash Dog Park. There is a parking lot beside the fenced-in dog park.

Colonel Danforth Off-Leash Dog Park

Although the area is large, the ground is covered in pea-gravel, which is hard for a person to walk through, and the dogs seemed unimpressed. 

Dogs playing in Colonel Danforth Dog Park

The beauty of the park lies outside of the fenced-in area. Mature trees and a shallow creek attract birds and wildlife. 

Short Route

You'll see a lot during this 2 km hike. We did this hike during a heatwave with the threat of a thunderstorm, so it was the perfect length for us.

Hiking trail near Colonel Danforth Dog Park

After visiting the dog park, follow the paved trail next to the covered picnic area.

Covered picnic area near Colonel Danforth Dog Park

Use a side trail to visit the riverbank. The water is shallow, and there is a rocky beach to walk on.


Feel a cool breeze and give your dog a chance to take a drink.

Raspberry bushes seen near Colonel Danforth Dog Park

The surrounding bushes are filled with raspberries. They look like raspberries but might be blackberries. 

Highland Creek near Colonel Danforth Dog Park

Walk in the creek for great views and a better chance to see herons and other water birds. There are several side trails to take you back to the paved path.

Just before the bridge, we noticed a deer watching us from the bushes. See the cover photo.


If you cross the bridge, you can hike on a paved path that takes you to Morningside Park as well as the main U of T Centennial Campus at Military Trail and Ellesmere Road. A future post will cover these trails.

Bridge over Highland Creek seen near Colonel Danforth Dog Park

For the short loop, turn left and go past the tennis courts where you'll see a house that needs repair. My searches haven't yet uncovered the historical significance of this property.

House seen near Colonel Danforth Dog Park

Continuing the hike to the left, we found a cairn erected in Lucy Swanton Doyle's memory. She was a journalist and apparently owned a schoolhouse on this property. The house may have a connection to her. 

Cairn seen near Colonel Danforth Dog Park

At this point, you'll be back at the dog park.

Off-Leash Opportunities

There are many large open areas, but there are also signs saying dogs cannot be allowed to run at large. I presume this is why the off-leash dog park was created. Lucy remained on leash throughout the walk except when she was in the river. 

Wildlife

There are deer on the property. We saw one looking at us, but other people say they've seen fawns jumping through the tall grass. We were told there is an active beaver and a dam along the river as well, but so far, we haven't located it.

Birdwatching

As we arrived, we saw many birds, including blue jays, cardinals, woodpeckers, kingfisher, red-winged blackbirds, and robins. The photo is an American Goldfinch.

Goldfinch seen near Colonel Danforth Dog Park

Trail Options

There are so many trails along the Highland Creek. Subscribe to this blog to get an email as a new post is published. 

Instagram

Enjoy your hike! When you post photos to Instagram, tag us at @hikingtoronto or #hikingtorontowithlucy.


Location: Colonel danforth off leash dog park, Toronto, ON M1E, Canada

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Sunnybrook Off-Leash Park

Image
Socialize your dog, visit a creek, and hike through a ravine Enjoy nature in another historic area of Toronto Sunnybrook Park is a place you can visit often and never repeat an experience. There are trails in the woods, paved paths, and a vast off-leash dog area. It is a nice mix of experiences with an occasional encounter with a creek or river. History We can thank the Kilgour family for this fabulous park. In 1909, Joseph Kilgour and his wife Alice established Sunnybrook Farms on a 200-acre lot. Joseph and his brother made their fortune in the paper industry, specializing in cardboard and paper bags. After the death of her husband, Alice donated the property to the City of Toronto on condition that it never be developed. Many of the original buildings and stables still exist. You can learn the full history of the property in the Sunnybrook Park post of the Hiking in the GTA blog. Parking There are two parking lots near the Sunnybrook Dog park. If you arrive at the ...
Read more

Bestview Park Nature Trails

Image
The parkland south of Steeles Ave between Bayview Ave and Leslie Street is a huge area with many trails. One trail follows the Don River, and another follows the tributary, German Mills Creek. The trails immediately behind the tennis courts are known as Bestview Park Nature Trails.  Parking Park near the  Steelesview Public School  at 105 Bestview Drive. Park on the street or use the spots at the school when it is closed.  Suggested Routes These trails are difficult to describe since none of them are marked. To make it clearer, I've separated the trail descriptions into three parts, as indicated by the numbers on the map. From Bestview Ave, follow the paved path between the tennis courts and the children's playground to the first bridge. This is the spot where the German Mills Creek flows into the Don River and is where our routes split into 1) right to St. Joes, 2) straight to Cummer, and 3) left to Leslie Street and a loop back to Bestview Park. Saint Joe's Turn ri...
Read more

Bluffer Park and Marina

Image
There's no place better to be on a super hot day than near the water. Toronto has many bodies of water that can help you and your dog beat the heat this summer. One of the most popular places is Bluffers Beach in Scarborough on Lake Ontario. Next to the beach is a marina and park. It is possible to hike the entire area in one day, but why not visit multiple times? A previous blog entry,  Bluffers Beach in Summer , gave details on visiting the large beach on the east side. This blog post is about the park instead of the beach.  There is a small beach on this hike, but on a holiday or weekend, this might fill up fast. People like to arrive early with food and shelter to stay the day.  Directions My suggested route is 4 km at the most and starts in the parking lot at the southern end of Brimley Road,  furthest to the right (west).  Parking Parking is free during weekdays until 5 pm, but you must pay on weekends, holidays and evenings. Suggested Loop Once you've pa...
Read more

Huntington Park, Markham

Image
Huntington Park is located south of the 407 highway between Bayview Ave and Leslie Street.  The German Mills Creek flows through the park and eventually into the East Don River.  The trail takes you through two valleys: Valley View Park and Maple Valley Park. Parking There is limited parking at the dog park, so drive a bit further to the larger parking lot between the baseball diamond and the soccer field. The address is Huntington Park Drive, east of Lambert Road . Off-Leash Dog Park The dog park is quite large, and Lucy has made many friends on every visit. We often start our hikes in a dog park to learn more about the area. On our first visit, we met a couple at the dog park who were planning to hike the trail with their dogs, so they became our tour guides on the hike. We've only been here in the winter, so I'm not sure what the surface is like underneath the snow. Hydro Corridor For a full 5 km loop, I recommend that you first walk the hydro corridor trail parallel t...
Read more

New Trails in Charles Sauriol Conservation Area

Image
A favourite trail has become even better! For the past few years, construction equipment has been on the south end of the Charles Sauriol Conservation Area. The construction is now complete, and the new trails connect even more neighbourhoods to this popular area of Toronto. The paved trail was originally from Lawrence Ave in the north to Wynford Drive in the south. Now you can follow paved trails to Wigmore Park or Anewen Greenbelt. Hiking from the Lawrence Ave parking lot to Wigmore Park is 3 km, so an in and out hike is a very pleasant 6 km.  Normally the parking lot and the trails are not maintained over the winter months. However, with Covid-19 still causing havoc, the city has decided to maintain trails this winter to allow people to get outdoors to get exercise and stress relief.  If you are new to this hiking area, maybe you have seen the rainbow tunnel driving on the DVP. This tunnel connects Moccasin Park to Charles Sauriol Conservation Area. There is a parking area ...
Read more

Sherwood Park Off-Leash Paradise

Image
Sherwood Park is located in mid-town Toronto between Bayview Ave and Mount Pleasant Road, north of Eglinton Ave. The city built Toronto's best off-leashed dog playground in the ravine. Dogs can run free through the forest and access Burke Brook. Despite the large number of dogs who visit the park, it is very clean and frequented by non-dog owners jogging or walking through the fenced-in area.    Parking There is a free parking lot at  160 Sherwood Ave  as well as street-parking on Blythwood Road.   Suggested Route It's a pretty straightforward trail. To explore every path, turn left whenever there is a choice to be made. The trail through the dog park is 2 km in length. The path is paved or decked, so it is clean and usually wide-enough to keep your distance from other people.  The off-leash area is fenced, so your dog is unable to go on roads or private property. It's hilly, so there is plenty of variety for you and your dog. Parts of the forest are f...
Read more

Earl Bales Park to Don Valley Golf Course

Image
Earl Bales is a large park with Sheppard Ave West to the north and Bathurst Street to the west.  There are many hiking trails in this park that we enjoy exploring, but only in the winter can the general public walk the golf course. The Don Valley Golf Course is south of Earl Bales and allows hikers and dogs to visit the property during the winter months. We've blogged about this trail before. See  Earl Bales Park . For this hike, we start at the community centre off of Bathurst Street, visit the dog park, walk past the ski hill, along the Don River to the golf course. We've previously turned back at the 401, but this time we continued to Wilson Ave for a 9 km hike. Parking There is no shortage of parking spots in the winter. The parking near the Community Centre is located at 4169 Bathurst Street . Dog Park We followed the signs down to the dog park. The trail is between the community centre and the Barry Zukerman Amphitheatre. As usual, we met new friends at the off-leash dog...
Read more

Humber River Trail - Etienne Brulé Park

Image
The Humber River is 100 km long, so there are many hiking trails to explore.  The river connects to Lake Ontario in the south. See earlier blog entry, Sunnyside Beach , about a park to explore at the southern point of the Humber River. Parking or Transit This hike begins at the  Etienne Brule Park , where there is free parking. For those who use transit, the nearest subway station is the Old Mill Station . You'll be following part of the Humber River Recreational Trail.  Suggested Route Starting at Etienne Brule Park, walk north on the paved path until you reach the footbridge over the Humber River. Turn back at this point for an 8.5 km hike.  The Trail You can walk the paved trail for the entire hike if you like. There is also a gravel path as well as a footpath next to the river. Cyclists tend to use the paved path and joggers the gravel path.  I like to use the river path to get the best view of the birds, and for Lucy to play in the river. Weir or Low H...
Read more

Rouge Park Woodland Trail

Image
The Rouge Park Woodland Trail is one of the lesser-known trails in the Rouge Urban National Park.  Several trails take you through a beautiful forest and along the Little Rouge River. The 2 km trail is marked with green signs. The longer trails are not marked but are easy to find. Parking The parking area is located at 19 Reesor Road . The lot is small, so if it's full, see if you can find a spot on the shoulder of Reesor Road. The Trail Our actual 3 km route is shown in the map from the UnderArmor MapMyWalk App. If you use this app, find our route:  https://www.mapmywalk.com/workout/5069365768 The longer 5 km route takes you up a steep hill to a flat area closer to Reesor Road. If you use this app, find our route:  https://www.mapmywalk.com/workout/4991115811 The beginning part of the trail is lined with rocks. Well-worn footpaths follow the river. Be careful as the trail is very close to the riverbank that is eroding. You'll get great views of the river with a few spots...
Read more

Colonel Danforth Park to Old Kingston Road

Image
Discovering this trail was one of the highlights of my summer. Lucy loved playing in the river and I had many opportunities to photograph wildlife. I met friendly people on every visit. I plan to visit more often and highly recommend it to anyone wanting to explore nature within the city. Suggested Route This hike is really straight forward. You can park at either end of the trail: The Colonel Danforth Dog Park  (on the west end) or the Colonel Danforth Park  (on the east end). My map shows the route starting at the dog park. The distance is 2.5 km each way. Parking After parking at the Colonel Danforth Dog Park, cross Old Kingston Road and turn left to cross the bridge. The trail head begins immediately after crossing the bridge. The Trail A paved path follows the river and attracts cyclists and joggers.  I walk on the unpaved trail beside the river, which allows me to see more wildlife and hidden treasure. It also allows me to leave Lucy off-leash for most of the walk....
Read more